While a major date is pretty standard for an established couple, those of us who are casually dating or trying to set up a first meeting with someone might mark February 14th as a complete blackout day. Sorry, no available hours!

I used to think it would be totally uncouth to have a first date on Valentine's Day, until my best friend did it. Guess what? She and her boyfriend are celebrating three years tomorrow! To hear the guy's perspective on why it actually worked so well for them, I spoke to her boyfriend, P., and got the scoop. Based on his account and a few other motivating reasons, here are some arguments for why a V-Day first date can be great:

1) It's super easy to remember your anniversary. Seriously, I can barely remember my parent's wedding anniversary, and their marriage is basically the reason I'm alive. Yet I remember my best friend's anniversary with her boyfriend with ease, because duh, it's Valentine's Day. So you can imagine that neither of them ever forget it either. 

2) And a bonus for the cheapies of the world: it's a twofer! Rest assured that P. is no cheapskate himself, but he brilliantly pointed out that if you're the frugal type, you can kill two birds with one stone by celebrating both your anniversary and Valentine's Day with one fancy dinner or bouquet.

3) Bars will be emptier than usual. If you want to have a first date at a fancy French restaurant, then this might not be a good idea. But if you're going the more standard first date route, which in my experience is a casual local bar, it's probably going to be quieter than usual, since Valentine's protesters are at home, and all the coupled up people are at Chez Overpriced.

4) It shows you're both relaxed. P. admits that he didn't realize the significance of the date until they'd already made plans, but that once he did, he didn't think it was a big deal. In fact, he was impressed that his now-girlfriend was willing to agree to the date without making a big deal of it or trying to reschedule on account of a silly holiday. It showed him that she didn't play games, and I would say vice versa, P. proved he's not one of those annoying guys that goes out of the way to avoid Valentine's Day.

5) It might end up making a super romantic story. Not only did P. have his first date with his girlfriend on February 14th, it was also the date of his grandparents' first date! OK, that won't happen for everyone, but how cute is that? 

6) It actually makes Valentine's Day more romantic later. P. says he's not super into being forced to celebrate "fake holidays" but the fact that they met on that day makes V-Day seem truly special.

7) All the cool kids are doing it. According to this Us Weekly article, Lauren Conrad had her first date with her current boyfriend last Valentine's Day. And last week, the celebrity mag also pointed out that tons of celebrities, like Keri Russell, Salma Hayek, and Snooki have gotten engaged or married on Valentine's Day. Even if that's different from a first date, the point is: Having romantic occasions on February 14th is a popular thing.

http://shine.yahoo.com/love-sex/first-date-valentine-8217-day-7-reasons-isn-220000738.html